A number of the Twitter critics pointed out what bad taste the “laughing” image was in and one even called for the press officer who posted the photos to be fired.

The pontiff has been under intense pressure since former Vatican ambassador Carlo Vigano claimed the church has known about the allegations against McCarrick for years.

Nardo has said he wants Francis to authorise a fully-fledged investigation into the former religious leader, who was removed as acardinal in July after a “credible accusation” that he groped a teenager.